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Post by Sonic Sloth on Jan 19, 2017 4:03:19 GMT
The Last Warlock came out on Amazon Underground last week! This is a bit of an experiment as all Apps on Amazon Underground are free for users to play. The developer gets paid a tiny amount per minute played. This monetization scheme is perhaps not the best for a game like Warlock - its more suited to mass audience games, but I'm giving it a go to see how it performs  To anyone playing on Amazon Underground, I'd appreciate if you could leave a good review! So far there has been a strange lack of reviews for the game despite there being quite a lot of players. |
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Post by babadook on Feb 15, 2017 17:20:04 GMT
They're not leaving reviews because they're not playing for long.
Don't think this is a reflection on your game, most apps don't last an hour on my phone.
Got 6 matches on my list, I think 5 are dead games due to inactives
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Feb 15, 2017 23:29:30 GMT
Yes, this is the problem with the free app culture. When you get something for free it is always just tempting to move on to the next free game.
Multiplayer was another reason I'd avoided making the game free. Its just an unfortunate reality with so many games out there that most people who start an MP game for the first time won't come back to it. Especially if they didn't pay for the game and therefore didn't have any investment in it.
However, in the last week my stats show that Amazon Underground players have been playing for twice as long as the Android, iOS + Steam releases combined.
192 people have played for a total of 310 hours, with an average time of about 30 minutes per player.
125 people started the tutorial. 104 started the first quest. 102 started the second quest, but only 32 people finished the 2nd quest. I suspect a lot of people get stuck on the Fire Reaper pit.
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Post by Monstone on Mar 6, 2017 9:59:39 GMT
I'm an Amazon user. I love my Kindle Fire but available games are sorely lacking. For that reason, my (android) phone gets games, my tablet rarely does. I was really starting to like TLW, but cannot get past the lava monsters (if that's the fire reaper pit, your suspicion may be correct). It has little to nothing to do with what you pay for having more value. If I'd have paid $5 for this game in the app store, and myself or one of my kids had gotten stuck on the first real level, I'd have been irritated enough to ask for a refund. Underground is saving you the headache of angry users. PS, haven't tried the multiplayer options but amazon games are notoriously buggy on mp platforms so I personally will not risk it; pass and play is as far as I go anymore for "multiplayer" on kindle.
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Mar 6, 2017 23:04:11 GMT
I understand, but it does cause a dilemma for me.
I personally hate the hordes of mobile games that lead players by the hand and never provide any kind of challenge or require the player to do any thinking. And from the feedback I get, I think the players that really enjoyed The Last Warlock have done so in large part specifically because it does not lead them by the hand at every step. For these players, the Fire Reaper pit was no real obstacle.
But I've had players complain that the game on easy mode is too hard, and others complain that the game on brutal difficulty level is too easy.
I've had players that get stuck on the Fire Reapers and those that just waltz past it (it is easy when you know how!). I've even had some players get stuck on the very first puzzle where you have to step on three weight panels to open the gate!
So I agree that I should have made the Fire Reaper pit more accessible somehow, I just fear that doing so would take away some of what makes the game interesting.
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Mar 10, 2017 2:32:29 GMT
After thinking about this, I've done an update to Urhigs Gaol to make the Fire Reaper pit a bit easier. There is now a more gentle introduction with a smaller Fire Pit and some strong hints as to how to get past it. Hopefully this will help some players!
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Post by Moonstone on Mar 10, 2017 9:13:44 GMT
Ah man, don't compromise due to whining! Did I mention I don't get much playtime? Now I'll never get an uncompromised test lol. There was an update pushed out when I opened the game (which is why I came back to the forum). Thank you for great customer service, Son, going in (but I still stand by the "don't compromise" sentiment). You provided a very specific hint in another thread without an actual walkthrough (which to me always feels like cheating), and was what I was looking for before chasing shinies and throwing in my two cents in this thread, so did your due diligence without kowtowing to a whiny player.  -queen of run on sentences |
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Trasd
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Post by Trasd on Jun 19, 2017 9:15:32 GMT
Alastair, I never had a problem with the Fire Reaper as a puzzle, but did find it a bit long. Once you figure it out (which doesn't take long if you're used to turn based strategy), it becomes (or, should I say became) a bit of a chore to get everyone across.
I think, for a gentler introduction to those not used to this genre, you did the right thing. Get those sales numbers up and maybe we can talk you into releasing more Android titles (like I tried to do a couple years ago)! Come on, give the community another chance....
BTW, I too came back to the forums because of the update. Since I talked you into creating them, I used to check the forums often, but not a lot was happening. I'm hoping for a resurgence of sales and more traffic here!
TLW is still a wonderful game and I'd like to see more turn based fans try it (you said you always knew it was a niche game). My (very smart) granddaughter is interested in RPGs (from watching me play) and I want to introduce her to TLW so we can play together. She likes co-op (you'd be surprised how few exist - Arcane Quest 3 is the only one I've found), but maybe a few battles against me will prove to be more fun for her!
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Jun 20, 2017 2:38:57 GMT
Well, you may get your wish as I am currently focusing on another Warlock-style game. Just don't expect it anytime soon!
The question is going to be, how can I make it more successful? I will improve the art of the game to make it more appealing, but I feel I need to pick up the pace of the game as well. It is early days but I may take a different approach to the exploring/puzzles/crafting sections of the game so they are not mixed in with the turn based combat.
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Post by meablefussock on Jun 30, 2017 16:11:01 GMT
I don't think I'm some gaming genius, but I didn't find the Fire Reaper pit to be remotely difficult. Once you realise what is happening (basically straight away), you simply have someone keep their attention whilst you nip another creature over to turn on the taps. Couldn't be much simpler! I certainly didn't spend ages moving everyone over.
Flying is probably the best spell in terms of utility, equally flying mounts are amongst the best summons.
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Jul 1, 2017 2:54:39 GMT
I think some people were stuck in the mindset that you move one unit at a time, and the idea that you could swap between units, moving each one only a single tile was something they did not consider.
It just shows how hard it is to create puzzles that work for everyone. I tested it on a variety of friends and added a few hints to help out, but I'm fairly sure a significant portion of people got stuck on it, and an even greater number got stuck on the following quest - they found the enemy Warlock to be too strong in 'Mausoleum of the Wraith' even on easy mode.
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Trasd
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Post by Trasd on Jul 13, 2017 13:13:28 GMT
Well, you may get your wish as I am currently focusing on another Warlock-style game. Just don't expect it anytime soon! The question is going to be, how can I make it more successful? I will improve the art of the game to make it more appealing, but I feel I need to pick up the pace of the game as well. It is early days but I may take a different approach to the exploring/puzzles/crafting sections of the game so they are not mixed in with the turn based combat. Alastair, without knowing exactly what your plans are, take a look at Heroes of Steel. The battles are turned based, but they pick up the pace by allowing the party to move as one, when not in combat. Baldur's Gate does this well too by allowing movement in formation, I just dislike BG's non-turn based battles. Can you give us a little more info? Don't forget, you have a number of beta testers here! Also, you and I went round and round with this last time, but I think a free demo model with IAP to unlock all the content will be better than a full license purchase with no demo. Remember, despite you background and experience, I'm probably one of the only people here that know what you do for a living! You're a relative unknown, despite all of this. Don't use the purchase only model until you have a good following. Don't get me wrong, I hate the freemium model, but that seems to be what folks expect. I know your argument about the bad reviews from people who don't invest into the game, but I think, at this point, you need to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. The initial bad reviews will balance out. It's just the kids installing it because they think they can get something for free. Just make sure it does say unlockable demo somewhere obvious. My 2¢..... |
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Post by Sonic Sloth on Jul 31, 2017 5:24:18 GMT
Hey, sorry for the late reply. I've been out of the country for a few weeks.
I have tried Heroes of Steel, and it was a reasonable solution to the problem of turn based battles without turn based exploring. Some other games do similar things, but none of these solutions would have worked with Warlock. The reason is that in Warlock the enemy is taking full turns even when you have not encountered them yet. In some quests the enemy Warlocks are exploring, summoning, collecting just like the player. Other games like Heroes of Steel, X-Com and The Banner Saga have enemies that are completely inactive until you encounter them. This difference is what didn't allow me to make this kind of system with Warlock.
For my next game, I probably will change that and make it work like the other more traditional games. It does mean losing one feature that made Warlock a bit different, but to be honest I'm not sure many players noticed it anyway (generally players don't spend too long thinking about what is going on beneath the surface).
As for beta testers, yes I'll certainly be looking to contact fans of Warlock to try out the new game, but it is a long way from being ready for that.
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Trasd
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Post by Trasd on Oct 20, 2017 12:47:02 GMT
Believe it or not Alastair, I do spend time thinking about what is going on behind the scenes!
So, still chugging away with the new game (I hope)?
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Post by Pirisel on Oct 30, 2017 9:36:26 GMT
Is there a way to unlock demon?? Since I completed all the quest but did not unlock it...I'm confused @-@
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